Citizens Police Academy

Don't worry, it wasn't a real gun.

That was taken about a year and a half ago by The Star's former photographer John Derrick.

I was half-way through the Shelby Police Department's Citizens Police Academy when we had a night of training at the firing range.

This fall I'm taking the course again and you can follow the adventure every week either in The Star or here on the blog.

Here are some of the topics discussed during Thursday's first class, which drew a record number of attendees:

SPD Vision Statement

"To be a recognized leader in our community by providing the highest level of customer service."


Core Values

• Honesty
• Teamwork
• Integrity
• Professionalism
• Respect

Profile of Employees

• 85 full-time employees
• 71 sworn personnel
• 14 civilian personnel
• 20 part-time police and civilian employees
• Average age: 36 years old
• Average tenure: 7.66 years
• 25 of 71 officers have college degrees
• 10 of those have AA degrees
• 11 have BS/BA degrees
• 4 have Masters

Department's Profile

• Budget: $5.3 million
• 62 vehicles
• 2 substations: Shelby Fire Department's Station 3 and Cleveland Mall
• SPD has national accreditation through CALEA which was initially earned Nov. 1, 2001
• SPD is one of 29 municipalities in NC to be accredited
• SPD was recommended for reaccreditation Aug. 2007

The department is divided into three divisions: 1) operations, 2) investigations, and 3) professional standards.

Operations (Patrol)

• The division is comprised of all the uniform officers. These are the first responders.
• There are 4 shifts of officers covering the streets 24/7
• The street crimes unit is comprised of 4 officers dedicated to 'problem solving.' They do not take calls but rather attend to issues other patrol officers don't have time to focus on.
• The community policing unit also falls within this division.

• Shift composition
• 1 watch commander oversees two squads
• Each squad has 2 Sgts. and 7 officers
• Of those 7, one is a K-9 officer
• In C.O.P. there is one Lt., one crime prevention specialist, a DARE and School Resource Officer

• Shifts
• Officers work permanent shifts
• Assignments are either 6:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. or 6:45 p.m. to 7 a.m.
• The street crimes unit shifts are dependant on the operation they are working

• The Workload
• In 2006, officers responded to 46,006 calls for service
• Average: 126 calls per day
• This does not count any administrative work (court, training, etc.)
• 2,405 arrests were made last year
• Officers strive for a 60 / 40 split: working proactive community policing 60 percent of the time and responding to calls the other 40 percent

Investigations

• CID (Criminal Investigations Division) has one Lt., one Sgt., one crime scene investigator, and 5 case detectives
• Vice has one Lt., one Sgt., one ABC detective, and 3 narcotics detectives

• Workload
• In 2006, detectives worked 642 cases
• Average: 128 cases per detective
• They work mainly 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. but all carry pagers

Professional Standards

• Responsibilities include: training, hiring / recruiting, and internal affairs

Dispatch Center

• Staffed 24/7
• 8 Telecommunicators
• All calls for service within the city limits come through this unit
• They are responsible for tracking and logging all calls

Records

• Staffed 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays
• All reports come through this unit for entry and filing
• They also cover the walk-ins and answer all in-coming non-emergency calls

That's all for this week. Check back next week for more on community policing and accreditation.